You can spot a Huntington Hospital Candy Striper from down the block because of their cute red and white uniforms. Many Pasadena students spend their time volunteering at the Huntington Hospital after school and on the weekends for this exact reason. But what do you gain from being a Candy Striper besides the fashionable outfit and accessible location? Volunteering at the hospital helps the hospital community, improve work ethic, and contribute to the help and healing of others. 

Candy Striping started as a high-school civics class project in East Orange, New Jersey in 1944. The term “Candy Striper” comes from the uniforms that the students wore, which were striped red and white like a candy cane. 

Hospital volunteers are usually tasked with discharging and escorting patients, as well as helping care for them, delivering gifts, and taking bags of blood and specimens to and from the lab. Tasks vary daily in correspondence with the hospital’s needs, which also allows volunteers to gain a wide variety of experience. For example, a volunteer working in maternity would have different tasks than someone in errand and escorts.

Candy Striping is not only a rewarding and fulfilling task, but a great way to give back to our local community.